Tuesday, May 08, 2012

Bruce Longenecker on Hearing the Silence in Luke

Thanks to Caitlin Mackenzie for sending over this press release about Bruce Longenecker's new book:

Uncovering the Literary Dimensions of Luke’s GospelLearning from the Silence in Luke 4:30

After Jesus is threatened to be thrown from a cliff by an angry crowd, Luke 4:30 says that He “passed through the middle of them and went on his way.” What happens to elicit his escape? Why are readers not given all the details of this important story? What should we be listening for in this seemingly intentional silence?

In this refreshingly unique book, New Testament scholar Bruce Longenecker demonstrates that reading Luke’s narrative is richly enhanced through attentiveness to that which is tantalizingly left out. Hearing the Silence invites the reader to delve deeply into the literary and theological dimensions of the Lukan narrative through an exploration of Jesus’ strangely under-narrated “escape” in Luke 4:30. Through a unique survey of this scene in Jesus novels and films, Longenecker brings into dramatic relief the options for interpreting this curious event, including a variety of strategies that have been employed to iron the scene’s narrative oddity. Against their backdrop, Longenecker’s own constructive proposals bring the reader into direct contact with some of the most significant features of the Lukan Gospel and worldview . . . .